


Amie's Doctor

by laurenhildebrand



Category: Doctor Who
Genre: Aliens, Time Travel
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-22
Updated: 2017-10-19
Packaged: 2019-01-04 04:27:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 15
Words: 17,687
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12161517
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/laurenhildebrand/pseuds/laurenhildebrand
Summary: When a large blue box and a stranger who calls himself the Doctor appear in Amie's living room, she doesn't know if she should let the man explain himself or call the police. Only the Doctor doesn't know why he's there. But he knows something is very wrong with Amie's house. And he think's Amie is causing it.Amie doesn't believe him, until her best friend vanishes into thin air. Finding her means time-traveling to ancient Ireland, dodging flying robots, and facing a soul-stealing witch.Amie's red hair gives her space-time abilities she never recognized. But it also makes her a target for the witch. If the witch isn't stopped, the Doctor and Amie will lose their souls.





	1. Blue Box

Amie pulled the bowstring back to her ear, carefully aligned the sight with her target, inhaled, and released. Her arrow shot past the upper edge of the target and disappeared in the grass.

"Rude," Amie muttered. I really need to adjust the sight on this thing. But it hardly seems worth the effort. She rarely used the bow, and wouldn't have been practicing today but the power was out so there wasn't anything to do inside. The power had been blipping on and off a lot lately.

Amie picked up another arrow and laid it on the bow. She was drawing back the string when she heard it – a muffled whoosh coming from the direction of her house. She stood still, listening. The noise sounded like a giant fan, or wind echoing in a pipe. Whoo-woo, whoo-woo.

Amie lowered the bow and walked over to the corner of the house. Her dad stood in the driveway, hitching his cotton candy trailer to his pickup.

"Were you just – did you just have the cotton candy machine on?" Not that I've ever heard it sound like that.

Her dad glanced up from the hitch. "No, why?"

"Oh, no reason."

He straightened and grinned at Amie. "You're hoping I've got some cotton candy to leave with you. It's not too late for you to come with me this weekend."

"Oh, geez, well, if I didn't have all this school work to do..."

"Yeah, yeah. You're only here for the food."

"And the bed. And the TV – when it works."

"I'll call the city office again this afternoon. The amount I pay in taxes they ought to get off their lazy asses and get our power fixed."

"You tell 'em that," Amie said.

"Oh I will." Her dad climbed into the truck and started the motor. He stuck his head out the window. "Stay outta trouble while I'm gone."

"Okay. I'll put off murdering Joe until you're back."

He laughed. "I'd like to see you try."

Amie watched her dad pull away before walking inside. She dropped her bow in the entry, next to the baby grand and a life-sized statue of a chef. Her dad was always picking up odd things at auctions. She ambled into the kitchen, grabbed a drink from the fridge, and leaned against the counter. The house was spookily quiet, the only sound was the harsh ticking of a battery clock on the wall.

A loud clatter came from the front rooms. Amie jumped, choking on a mouthful of soda.

"JB?" she spluttered between coughs. "Is that you?"

The ticking clock was her only answer. Amie listened, trying to recover her breath. No, there was another sound now – a low, almost imperceptible hum.

Amie moved slowly toward the entryway, trying to locate the source of the humming. The doorway between the entry and living room was covered by a blanket, hung there to keep out drafts. Amie pushed aside the blanket, ducked under it, and collided head-on with a hard surface.

"What the...?" She jerked back and stood staring at the object in amazement. A large wooden box, painted dark blue, filled the doorway and almost touched the ceiling. A yellow light perched on it's top, glowing faintly. The hum she'd heard earlier was louder now. It seemed to be coming from inside the box.

Amie dropped the curtain and backed away. What is in my living room? How did it get there?

She stared at the blanket, swaying gently from her touch. It looked perfectly normal, just like every other day. She looked around her. Piano, pictures on the mantle, books stacked on the floor, a collection of ratty boxes, the rack of coats, the creepy chef – everything was exactly as it should be. Well, not exactly as it should be. I really need to clean up sometime.

Amie eyed the blanket suspiciously. Had there really been something behind it? The bump on her forehead indicated yes. She stepped forward and flung up the blanket. The box was still there, still faintly humming. Amie reached out slowly and lightly touched it, then jerked her hand away as if the box might zap her. Nothing happened. She reached out again, this time running her palm over the rough wood. She squinted up at the lettering along the top.

"Police box? What's a police box?"

Unable to get through the doorway, Amie dropped the curtain and ran around through the kitchen, pantry, and office to get at the living room from the other side. She stopped at the office's sliding doors, staring at the object that had so mysteriously appeared.

The box filled the space between the couch and TV, while the coffee table appeared to have been shoved aside to make room for it. The room's heavy curtains only allowed a hazy light to penetrate. The dim sunshine made the box appear somber and mysterious. This side of the box looked almost identical to the side she'd run into, but a white plaque hung on one of the panels, and there was a door.

Amie found herself moving into the room, drawn irresistibly toward that door. This has got to be a dream. There's no way this thing is really in my living room. But dreams don't feel like this.

She reached out to touch the handle. Just as her fingers brushed it the door opened inward and a man poked his head out.

"Why, hallo. Is this Chiswick?"


	2. Who Are You?

Amie jumped back and gawked at the man. "Chizzik? What is Chizzik? You're in my living room!"

The man stepped out of the box and looked around. "Way'll, I can see that, but where's your living room? Wait, wait..."

He spun around in the middle of the room, one hand clutching his hair, the other gesturing wildly. "Flatscreen telly, books, clothing, accent – Oi! America! Oh, I do love America. Everything's bigger here – the shops, the cars, the people. So, where am I in America? Big country, easy to get lost in, just ask Cortez." He licked a finger and held it up. "Kansas. Rural Kansas by the smell of it. Lovely state. I stayed here with Dorothy once."

If hair could be excited, then Amie would swear that every hair on his head was bristling with enthusiasm. Overwhelmed by the man's rapid speech – in a strong British accent nonetheless – she stared at the stranger, trying to form a coherent thought. He stood with his hands thrust into the pockets of his suit, head thrown back, happily studying his surroundings.

"So..." Amie began, "you're wearing red converses."

"Yup."

"Like... with a suit."

"Yup."

"In my living room."

"Now you've got it," he grinned. "Bit confusing, I know, me popping in like that. Just imagine my surprise. I was heading for the other side of the galaxy." He stuck out his hand. "I'm the Doctor, by the way. What's your name?"

"Um... Amie. Amie Coleman."

He gripped her hand and smiled. "Nice to meet you Amie, Amie Coleman. Now," he became abruptly serious, "what am I doing in your living room?"

"You mean you don't know?" This man must be totally nuts – though she didn't really need any more proof of that. He's a really cute nuts, though. And that hair – sexy.

"No," he frowned, surveying the room as though the reason for his arrival might be written there. "This happens to me sometimes. I'm headed toward the Ganymede complex on Triton Eight and – sloop – I wind up in a ginger's living room. I like gingers," he continued. "I have a friend – way'll, had a friend – way'll, she's still my friend, I'm just not really hers anymore... she's a ginger."

His expression had grown sad as he spoke. Amie's heart went out to him.

"You'll meet another one – a red-head to travel with."

The Doctor whirled on her. "What? Why did you say that?"

Amie was flustered. How do I know he'll meet another ginger? I shouldn't know that. "It's... I just... well... there's lots of people who are ginger. You could meet another one someday." Lame.

"No, you said 'travel with.' How did you know I travel with my friends?" He grasped her shoulders and scrutinized her face. God, his eyes are beautiful.

"I..."

Bang, bang, bang.

"That'll be the door," he said, still studying her.

"Right, yeah," she stepped back. "I'll just go answer the door." She started to leave then came back. "You won't go anywhere?"

He stuck his hands in his pockets and grinned at her. "Wouldn't dream of it."

"Good." Amie fled back through the pantry and kitchen. Whoever was at the door was pounding on it again. Actually, it sounded more like they were kicking it.

"Just a sec. I'm coming, I'm coming." She jerked the door open and stared.

"Lauren! Uh... hi?"

Lauren grinned, "I brought milk. And a watermelon. I hope you can eat the whole thing because we have sooo many right now. It's ridiculous. I think Kristen picked nine this morning." She came inside, still talking. "I would have just come in, but I couldn't get the door open without dropping something. I guess I could have set the milk down and opened the door, but, y'know."

Lauren paused, waiting for a response. Seeing Amie's confusion her smile widened. "You forgot I was coming over."

"Pfft – who? What? Me?"

"I sent you a text to remind you," Lauren laughed.

"Yeah... My phone's dead. And the power's out so I can't recharge it."

"Oh, your power's out? I guess Neal Caffrey will have to wait. Where do you want me to put this stuff?" She held up the watermelon and milk jar.

"Uh... here, bring it to the kitchen." Amie led the way, trying to decide what to do. Lauren showing up had surprised her, but she was glad she was here. Amie wanted to find out who this Doctor person was. Her sense of adventure had been aroused, and what better way to have an adventure than with Lauren for backup?

"So, what do you think?" Lauren asked, thumping the melon down on the counter. "Watermelon first?"

"Actually, I've got something to show you first," Amie said.

"Okay, what?"

"C'mere."

Lauren grinned and followed Amie back to the entryway. Amie lifted the blanket, revealing the blue box.

"Wow. Is this one of your Dad's new hobbies?" Lauren asked playfully. "It doesn't leave much room for watching TV."

"No, it showed up from literally nowhere, sometime in the last hour."

Lauren laughed, her usual I-know-there's-a-joke-here-but-I-don't-get-it response.

"No," Amie insisted, "I really – like really – do not know how it got here. And that's not all." She pulled the blanket back from the doorframe, allowing them to see a small section of the living room around the box. The Doctor stood by a window, apparently studying the AC unit with a penlight.

"Who is he?" Lauren whispered.

"I dunno. He showed up with the box. Says he's the Doctor."

"A doctor of what? Window fans?"

Amie giggled. "You're the best." She let the curtain fall. "So... wanna meet him? Find out how he got here?"

Lauren looked shocked at the suggestion. "There is a strange man, who waltzed right into your house uninvited, and you want us – two young females – to find out why he's here? Uh-uh. We should be calling the police."

"Aw, where's the fun in that? Besides, JB's asleep upstairs. We can call him if we get in trouble."

"Um, how loud would we have to scream for him to even wake up?"

"Pretty loud," Amie admitted. "C'mon!" she begged. "Where's your sense of adventure?"

"I sorted sheep yesterday. That's all the adventure I can take this month."

"He's wearing a suit – how dangerous could he be?"

"That's your best argument?"

"Well, that and the fact that he's cute. Please come meet him. If you think he's scary after meeting him then we can call the police."

Lauren looked undecided – which was much more promising than heading for the phone. "Well, if I say 'call the police' you won't argue with me?"

"Maybe."

"Amie!"

"Okay, fine, whatever. Now come meet him!"

"Fine. But first I'm getting my pepper spray from the car. Y'know, I've always wanted to pepper spray somebody. This might be my chance."

Amie jumped up and down and hugged her. "You're wonderful. Okay, he gets creepy you pepper spray him, then use your sheep throwing moves on him while I run for the police."

"Ha ha. I still feel like this is really stupid."

"I know!" Amie rejoiced. "And fun. This is literally the most exciting thing ever."

Lauren rolled her eyes and went for her pepper spray. Amie almost danced with excitement. Suddenly having a giant box and strange man materialize in her house wasn't scary – it was a fascinating mystery. Okay, it was still a little scary, but that only made things more fun.

Lauren returned, pepper spray cocked and ready. "Okay, lets meet this guy. But if he's an ax murderer I'm going to kill you."

"Fair enough." Amie led the way, Lauren hovering behind her. They found the Doctor standing on the coffee table, pointing his flashlight at the ceiling fan. Only it wasn't a flashlight – it glowed blue at one end and buzzed. The Doctor listened to it, looking puzzled. He caught sight of the girls. "Hallo, again. Brought a friend?"

"Um, yeah. This is Lauren."

Lauren half waved. "Hi."

The Doctor broke into a grin. "Nice to meet you Lauren. I'm the Doctor."

"Yeah, that's what Amie said. But Doctor who?"

He was studying the fan again. "Just the Doctor."

"What are you doing?" Amie interjected. If a cute guy wanted to stand on her coffee table she wasn't going to complain, but it was kinda strange. Of course, so was everything the Doctor had done.

"Way'll," the Doctor stepped down, still staring up at the fan. "It's odd – there's no power in your house. I'm trying to figure out what happened to it."

"What happened to it? The power's out. It's been going on and off for a week now."

"No, it's more than that," the Doctor said, pocketing his device. "When there's a power cut it leaves loose electricity in the lines. You haven't got that. Everything's completely dead – like it's been drained. Question is," he turned to the girls, "what's draining it?"


	3. "Nothing Strange is Happening!"

Amie shivered. Oh stop it. There's nothing creepy about a power outage. But the way he asked...

"So what kind of a doctor are you?" Lauren asked.

"Oi. You can't get over that one." The Doctor grinned. He pulled out a stethoscope and used it to listen to the TV screen.

"It's just... you haven't told us why you're here, how you got here, or what you think you're doing." The Doctor didn't appear to be listening. He'd moved on to the karaoke machine. "I don't like the idea of strange people poking around in my friend's house," Lauren finished in desperation.

"Quite right too," the Doctor said. "A situation like that you should call the police." He crawled behind the TV.

"See?" Lauren poked Amie. "Even he thinks I'm right. I'm calling the sheriff right now."

"Of course," the Doctor's voice came from behind the TV, "that's only for strange people. I'm not people."

"Of course not, you're a person," Lauren said irritably. Amie saw she had her phone out.

"No-pe," the Doctor's head appeared. "Not that either."

"What are you talking about?" Lauren asked. "And – doggone it, why's my phone dead? I thought I charged it yesterday."

Amie wasn't listening. She stared at the Doctor in excitement. "You just said you're not a person."

"Yup."

"Is that for real? I mean... are you, like... like an alien or something?" Please say yes.

"Yup"

"Oh god." This was wonderful. This was quite possibly the most wonderful thing that had ever happened to her. The Doctor watched her reaction, smiling.

"And – and that blue thing, is it...?"

"My spaceship."

"Oh god."

Lauren was staring at both of them. "Amie! Don't tell me you actually believe him. Aliens don't even exist."

"You sure about that?" the Doctor asked.

"Well, not a hundred percent. I'd have to know everything to be positive. But... but... you expect us to just take your word for it that you're an alien?"

I would. Why would he lie to us? Besides, he doesn't look quite human.

"Let's find out then." He took off his stethoscope and handed it to Lauren.

"What am I supposed to do with this?"

"Use it." He gestured to himself. She looked uncertain. "Go on then. I don't bite."

Lauren slowly put in the ear pieces and placed the stethoscope's end against his chest. "Okay. You've got a heartbeat."

He motioned to the other side. She looked puzzled, but slid the stethoscope over.

"Way'll?" He watched her, waiting for the reaction.

Lauren's eyes widened. "Is that? No, that's gotta be from..." She jumped back and whirled on Amie, jabbing the stethoscope at her chest.

"Whoa. What are you doing?" Amie asked, pulling back.

"Shhhh! Hold still, I'm trying to figure out what he's supposed to sounds like." Lauren listened to the Doctor again. "Two hearts. Is that what I'm hearing? You've got two hearts?" He nodded.

"Ooh, can I listen?" Amie begged. She snatched the stethoscope and listened with delight to the double thub, thub, thub. She grinned up at the Doctor. He grinned back.

"Right, now that we've all had fun discovering I'm not human, let's get back to the problem at hand. Lauren's phone is dead, even though she charged it yesterday. Your house is dead, and all the power is drained from the wiring. Something is sucking the power out of everything in your house. Now, I need you to tell me how long it's been happening and if you've noticed anything else strange going on. And grab hold of Lauren, she looks like she might fall over."

Amie turned to Lauren, who was rather pale but immediately flushed at being noticed. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah – no – I just... felt light-headed for a sec there. I'm fine. I'm really fine," she protested, looking anything but. She coughed. "Could I... I need a drink of water." She rushed out of the room. Amie hurried after her. She found her in the kitchen, chugging from a water bottle.

"Are you sure you're alright?"

"Not really, no. Amie, there's an alien in your living room! Why is there an alien in your living room? I don't even believe in aliens."

"Do you now?" Amie grinned. She looks so cute when she's flustered.

"I guess I have to. It makes more sense than any other explanation I have at the moment. But... but... him being a random stranger would have been creepy. Him being an alien – it's just plain weird."

"You look like you're about to cry," Amie said with concern. Gee, I wouldn't have asked her to meet him if I knew it would make her upset.

Lauren forced a smile, "Well, yeah, if you keep staring at me I'm gonna cry." She rubbed her eyes. "Bleah. I feel stupid, but I don't know how you're supposed to act when you meet an alien. Is he dangerous?"

"Do you want to go home? I can take you if you like."

"Naw." Lauren took a deep breath. "I'll stick around to rescue you if you fall into a worm hole. Plus, I don't know why you're enjoying this so much, but you really are and it's fun to watch."

Amie hugged her. "Like, I am literally so excited right now."

"Because he's an alien or because he's a cute alien?"

"Right?" Amie giggled. "Oh, oh, oh, his hair! I love his hair so much."

"I want his trench coat," Lauren said.

They were both giggling when the Doctor poked his head into the room. "Feeling better then?"

"Yeah," Lauren said. "Amie, I'll cut up that watermelon if you'll point me toward a knife. It still needs eaten and he might like some."

"By the sink," Amie directed.

"Aw, lovely," the Doctor said. "It's been a long time since I've had a good watermelon." He strolled into the room, sat down, and leaned across the table, studying Amie intently. "Tell me, how long have you been having these power cuts?"

"Well, they started about a week ago. The power just goes out for a while, then comes back on."

"How long of a while?"

"It varies. Sometimes it's only a couple minutes, sometimes all day. Dad keeps trying to get the city office to do something about it, but they claim they've had people out to check and there's nothing wrong."

"I see." The Doctor tilted his head back and pursed his lips, but kept looking at Amie. "And it's only your house? No other houses on the street?"

"Yeah." Why was he so interested in this? "Look, we have an old house. It has issues."

"Have you noticed anything else that seemed odd, even just a little bit?"

There's you. "No, not really."

The Doctor looked disappointed. "Come on, think. No strange noises? Or people that you think you see but then nobody's there?"

Amie shook her head. "It's been a really normal week."

The Doctor blew air out of his cheeks and scanned the room for inspiration. Suddenly his face lit up. He grabbed Amie's shoulders. "Earlier, when we first met, you knew I traveled with my friends but I hadn't told you."

Amie heard Lauren stop cutting to listen better. "Yeah, but I don't know how I knew."

"But that wasn't just an accident," the Doctor insisted. "You saw something about me."

"I... guess." Amie was confused. I also know you're gonna meet another ginger soon, but it's not like I had some special revelation. It's just... there. How can I just know?

"Have you ever done that before? Intuitively known something so specific without being told?"

"Never." Okay, now I'm creeping myself out.

Lauren spoke, "What's that humming noise? Oh, never mind, it's the fridge."

The Doctor jumped up, startling Amie. "The power's back."

"Yay," Amie said, irritated at being spooked. "Maybe this time it will stay on long enough for my phone to charge." Why am I jumpy? Nothing strange is happening. Well, except him. And me. Lauren's pretty normal right now.

The Doctor had his light up device out and was checking the room with it. "Everything's normal right now. Why is everything suddenly normal?"

"Gee, how to explain why things aren't strange?" Amie mused. "What a hard question."

"I've got a better question," Lauren spoke up. "Why are all your clocks showing different times? If you count the oven and microwave you must have five clocks in here. None of them say the same thing and I don't think any of them have the correct time."

Amie shrugged. She wasn't really listening. She watched the Doctor examine the toaster. I don't know what he's so worked up about. But he's even cuter when he's confused. I guess I can forgive him for creeping me out.

"Unless you have a strong objection I'm gonna reset the clocks," Lauren said. "Call me nuts, but it's a pet peeve of mine. I reset clocks in the houses we clean too."

"Fun stuff." Amie would've chuckled but the sound froze in her throat. An image flashed through her mind. She gasped, then spun toward Lauren and yelled, "Wait! Don't touch it!"

She was too late. Lauren's fingers brushed the microwave and she vanished.


	4. "You Knew"

Amie burst out laughing. "Oh god, I was right." Her laughter abruptly changed to a wail, "Unnnnnnnnnnh, unnnnh, uh, uh, uh..."

The Doctor dropped the toaster and vaulted over the counter. He grabbed at the microwave, slapping it and shining his light at it. "No, no, no, no!" he shouted. "Blast, the power's cut again."

"Oh my god," Amie gasped. "She's gone."

"Yes," the Doctor grunted. He jerked the front panel off the microwave and clawed at the wiring.

"But, oh god, she disappeared. Right in front of me. She disappeared."

"Yes. I saw her." He had his head inside the microwave now.

"What happened? Doctor? What happened to Lauren?" Amie shouted.

Slowly he pulled his head out and stared at the microwave. "Instantaneous molecular transport. She's been teleported. But how? How? It's just a microwave." He stared at the gutted appliance, then whirled on Amie. "You knew!"

"Knew what?"

"You shouted at her, told her not to touch it. Why did you tell her that?"

"I..." Amie remembered the fleeting image. "I knew... that if she touched it, it would turn on... and... and send her away. That's all." She gulped and twisted her hands in her shirt tail.

"You knew 'it' would turn on? What would turn on?"

Amie shook her head. "I don't know. I don't know!"

The Doctor walked around the counter to Amie and placed his hands on her shoulders. "Amie..."

Amie jerked away. "Don't touch me! My best friend just – just went poof. None of this strange stuff happened before you showed up. Now bring her back or pack up your blue box and get out of here!"

The Doctor gazed sadly at Amie. "I will do everything I can to find her, but I can't do it without your help. Whatever's happening here is connected to you – it started long before I arrived. Now, I need you to think, harder than you've ever thought before, because now it matters more."

"What am I supposed to think about?" Like thinking is gonna bring Lauren back.

The Doctor placed his hands gently on Amie's temples. His fingers felt cool. "You sensed that Lauren would be snatched away. Think about that. Think about time and space and crossing vast stretches of emptiness with only the stars for company."

Amie shivered. That's what you do.

"Yes, but don't think about me. Think about Lauren."

That was creepy. Amie eyed the Doctor skeptically for a moment, then closed her eyes and tried to focus. Time. Space. Empty distance. The Doctor's hands were steady on her temples. They seemed to be helping her, guiding her thoughts. So far away. Not Lauren, someone else. Far away but coming closer. Coming...

"Hello? Hello, can you hear me?"

Amie's eyes snapped open. She stared at the center of the kitchen in amazement. A man had appeared – or rather, was appearing. His image was transparent, blue tinted and flickering.

The Doctor saw him too and started up. "Who are you? How are you doing that?"

The man's voice sounded like it came from far away. "Where am I?"

"You're in my kitchen!" Amie shouted. "Geez, what is it today with people appearing in my house?" The Doctor put out a hand to keep Amie back, but she pushed forward. "Are you the one doing the teleporting thing? Where's Lauren? Is she okay? Are you with Lauren?"

The man opened his mouth but before he could answer his image wavered and vanished. Amie ran to where he'd been a moment before. "Oh god, this can't be happening. I just talked to a ghost and it's not the weirdest thing going on."

The Doctor was pacing back and forth. He scrubbed his hands through his hair. "Think, think, I've got to think. Ah!" He swung on Amie. "A mobile – Lauren had her mobile when she vanished. We can phone her!"

Amie stared at him. It seemed too simple to be possible. "But... but... it was dead..."

"Naw. The battery was being drained, like every power source in this house. Only now she's not in the house. It should be working again. Do you have her number?"

"It's on my phone, but my phone's dead too."

"Bring it here."

Amie brought him her phone. The Doctor shone his blue light on it.

"What is that thing?" Amie asked, watching him. "You keep using it. What's it do?"

"Sonic screwdriver," he said. "I use it to sonic... stuff. If I can stop the power drain from your mobile, I'll be able to boost the signal and we can phone your friend no matter where she is in the universe."

"No way."

"Yup. Except..." he squinted at the screwdriver, "your mobile really is dead. Don't you ever charge it?"

"And when am I supposed to do that with the power always going out?"

"I know! Electronic devices are designed to shut down before the battery is completely dead to preserve their memory. I can use the back-up power to run a trace on Lauren's signal. It may wipe your contact list though."

"It won't be the first time," Amie muttered. "Or the second."

Her contacts flashed up on the phone screen. "Is she listed under Lauren?"

"Lolly," Amie instructed, peering past his shoulder.

"Who is 'Free Food'?" The Doctor arched an eyebrow.

"My Dad. Go down."

" 'Creepy Dude'?" The eyebrows shot up another notch.

"Down, not up. There – that one." Amie jabbed her finger at the screen. "Well? Is it working?"

"Yes."

"Then where is she?"

The Doctor stared at the screen in surprise. "Ireland."


	5. Lost

Lauren stared at the tall trees and shadowy undergrowth surrounding her. She closed her eyes, then opened them again. Still the same. One second standing in Amie's kitchen, then a feeling like an electric shock, and the next second here. She looked down at the watermelon knife still in her hand. Juice ran down the blade and spattered on the twigs and leaves. She had juice drying all over her hands as well. Not a nice feeling, especially since there was no way to wipe it off. Funny how insignificant things are still annoying.

"So... do I stay here or try to find... something?" What can I even look for? I don't know where I am or how I got here so that kinda makes getting back difficult. The rustling leaves provided no intelligible answer. Sunlight sifting through the foliage might tell her which way was north, but not which way Amie's house lay.

Lauren turned in a full circle. No direction looked any more promising than another. She stopped, but the trees continued to spin slowly. "Whoa." Lauren swayed and put her hand to her head. Ugh, this is the second time I've felt randomly nauseous. What is going on? She blinked hard, trying to dispel the black spots that swelled in her vision. Gradually, the spots faded and the trees went back to only swaying with the wind.

A faint whirring whispered through the trees. It wasn't wind, it sounded too – mechanical. Lauren listened, trying to pinpoint the direction. It came from her left, but seemed to be moving. Machines mean people. People mean help. She pushed through the trees, searching for the noise's source.

There. She glimpsed a flash of metal from the corner of her eye. A metal sphere, about a foot across, hovered among the trees. Two metal claws hung down from it and an antenna poked up from its top. Lauren watched, fascinated, as it flew in random zig-zags between the trees. Like it's looking for something.

The thing abruptly turned and headed toward her. Lauren stepped back, instinctively holding up the knife to ward it off. "I'm warning you." Yeesh, I'm talking to a flying metal thing. Aliens, flying robots – what next?

The ball stopped a few yards from her, hovering at head height. A small tube extended from its body with a metallic click.

"Look out!"

Someone crashed into Lauren, sending her sprawling. A dart shot out of the sphere and buried itself in the tree where she'd just been standing. The man on top of her scrambled up. He grabbed a branch off the ground and swung it at the metal ball like a baseball bat. Crash. Sparks exploded from the sphere, and it dropped heavily to the ground. The stranger stood over the smoking shell, breathing hard.

"You alright?" he asked.

Lauren slowly pulled herself up. "I think so. I – ow!" She sank back down, grabbing her foot. Blood seeped from a gash on her instep.

The man knelt beside her. "Let me see."

Lauren reluctantly let him take her foot. "It doesn't hurt too bad. I must have sliced it on a rock when you knocked me over. Wrong day to wear sandals."

He slipped off her shoe and twisted her foot back and forth. "Nothing feels broken. Does it hurt to move it?"

Lauren flexed experimentally. She winced. "Just the cut. It'll be fine – I'll just limp around for a while."

"Hold still and relax." The man held her ankle in one hand and placed the other over the wound. A tingling sensation went through Lauren's foot and up her leg. She bit her lip to keep from jerking away – it tickled. The man removed is hand.

"How the..." Lauren stared at her foot. The cut was gone, there wasn't even a scar. She ran her thumb along her instep. No tenderness either. She looked up at the man in confusion.

"Time-reversal healing. As far as your foot's concerned, the last two minutes never happened."

"Oh." She looked down at her foot again, rubbing her hand along her instep. That was crazy. And really, really cool. She slipped her sandal back on.

"I'm Ioan, by the way."

"Lauren." She studied his face and suddenly realized he wasn't as old as she's first thought – maybe only a couple years older than her. I like his profile. He's not crazy handsome, but with that sharp nose and those cheekbones – he'd sure be fun to draw. And being rescued by him is kinda romantic. She flushed at the last thought. Stop it, don't be silly.

Ioan held out his hand. Lauren took it and scrambled to her feet.

"Sorry I had to tackle you."

"No, don't be. I'm sure you were justified." She looked down at the crushed metal sphere. "What is that thing?"

Ioan kicked it. "Basic work drone. It was hunting for me and you got in the way.

"Would it have killed me?"

"Something like that."

How can you be 'something like' killed? She started to ask, then reconsidered. It had been an intentional evasion. He didn't want to talk about it.

"Are there more around? More drones?"

Ioan hesitated before answering. "No. No, this is the only one." He studied the surrounding trees. "Look, you'd better head home now."

"I can't. I don't know where I am or how I got here."

He turned back to her, scowling. "You're lost?"

"Worse than that." Lauren paused. He'd never believe her, but he was obviously waiting for an explanation. "Okay, this is gonna sound really bizarre."

"I'm listening."

"Well, all I know for sure is, one second I'm standing in my friend's kitchen and next I feel like I've been electrocuted. Then I'm here." She glanced at him hopefully. Does he think I'm nuts? His expression didn't change, he seemed to be staring through her.

She tried to cover her discomfort with a grin. "I probably sound like I'm crazy."

He snapped out of his reverie and refocused on her. "No, I believe you." He rubbed a hand through his hair. "Sorry. I guess you'll have to stay with me until we find a way to get you home."

Lauren's heart leaped. "You think you can help me?"

"Maybe. C'mon." He started off through the trees.

Lauren fell into step behind him. "Where are we going?"

"I've got some gear back here that should help."

"Help? With what?"

"Teleporting."

Lauren missed a step and almost ran into a tree. She dodged around it and hurried to catch up with Ioan. "Teleporting? Like, really?"

"Yeah. That's how you got here. It's the only way to get you home."

"But... I didn't know that was even possible."

He glanced at her. "Not a thing where you come from?"

"No. And neither are killer drones."

"You can be thankful for that," he said dryly.

They walked along is silence. Lauren studied her new acquaintance. I like him. He seems really focused on something. And a little sad. Especially when he gets that far away look. I wonder what his story is. He glanced at her and she quickly looked away. Don't stare like an idiot. Think of something to say, start a conversation.

"I like your hair. Bright red's always been my favorite hair color." Okay, that was lame.

Ioan looked at her in surprise. "You like red hair?"

"Sure. I've got a friend whose hair is the same color. It's not that weird of a thing to like, is it?" She asked, grinning.

"No." Ioan fixed his eyes straight ahead. "It's just not that popular where I live."

"Do you live around here? Which – where are we anyway?"

They'd reached a fallen tree. Ioan began pulling a backpack and an assortment of black cases from under its branches. "I'm from Ériu – doubt you've heard of it. It's a lot further away that where you're from. As for here – I don't know if this place even has a name."

He started picking up the cases. Lauren jumped to help. "I can carry a couple of those."

"No, I've got 'em. Besides, you're still carrying your drone fighting knife."

Lauren glanced at the kitchen knife in her hand. "I feel silly lugging this around, but it doesn't seem right to just leave it."

"Here," Ioan set down a case, took the knife, and tucked it into his boot. Lauren pounced on the case and hefted it up. Geez, it's heavier than it looks.

"C'mon, I can get that." He held out his hand.

"Nope. You're already loaded down like a pack mule. I want to help. Now where are we taking all this?"

He sighed. "I need to find a clear area to set it up. Preferably a hill – better reception." They set off through the trees, Ioan leading the way, Lauren right behind with the case banging against her legs.

"Tell me about Ériu. What's it like?"

"Only if you tell me about your home first."

Lauren grinned. No need to ask twice. "I live on a small farm in rural Kansas."

"What's Kansas like?"

"Exactly the same as this only without the trees and hills and streams and rocks..."


	6. Time-space Connection

"She's in Ireland?" Amie wasn't sure if she should laugh or bite the Doctor's head off – literally. Maybe both.

"There's more than that," the Doctor said slowly. "She's in Ireland four thousand years ago."

Okay, laughter really was the only response to that news. "That means we can't buy her a plane ticket home."

"No," he mused absently. "Still though, it could be worse."

"Worse than being lost four thousand years ago?"

"I had a friend get stuck in a whole different universe."

"That makes me feel so much better about my life."

The Doctor put down Amie's phone. She picked it up and shoved it into her pocket. Stupid alien. Can run a trace on a phone signal across four millennia, can't get a microwave-teleport to bring my friend back. And how do you lose someone in a different universe?

A gloomy silence settled on the kitchen, filled only by the wall clock's quiet ticking. Amie twisted a strand of hair around her finger. She looked at the Doctor. His dark eyes seemed to be seeing things a thousand miles away. He really doesn't look human.

Suddenly he focused on her. "How is that clock running? The power's still cut, how is it running?"

"Pfft, it's a battery clock. Duh."

"No," the Doctor scrambled across the table and grabbed the clock. "Whatever's draining the power is draining batteries too – your mobile, Lauren's mobile. So why is this clock still working?" He yanked it off the wall and laid it on the table. They both leaned over it.

It was a typical mechanical clock, with a cheap plastic face and a box on the back for the mechanism. The Doctor flipped open the battery compartment. It was empty. He pulled a pair glasses from his pocket, put them on, and carefully removed the back of the case.

"Beautiful," he breathed.

"What?" Amie asked. It was a meaningless collection of gears and wiring to her.

"There – that's what's drawing in all the power." He pointed to a small black device, about the size of a quarter, nestled in the corner of the compartment. "It's a molecular transport conductor. This isn't earth technology. So what's it doing in a kitchen clock?" He peered closely at it, then squinted at Amie. "Where'd this clock come from?"

She shrugged. "Dad picked it up at an auction somewhere. He's always buying random stuff."

The Doctor pulled off his glasses. "Did he get this recently?"

"I guess..." Amie tried to think back. She didn't usually keep track of what her Dad showed up with. "He was really excited about something he found for his cotton candy machine last week – I think he bought the clock at the same time."

The Doctor studied the clock again. "Could it...?" he mused aloud, "No, no. That's too much. But... Yes! Oh, yes. Oh, that's brilliant that is!" He looked up, glowing with excitement.

"Lolz – what's brilliant?"

He started talking at a hundred miles an hour. "This device – it's not a full teleport. This can break apart a body and send it through space, but it's operating without direction. There's no computer system to tell it what to teleport or where to send it. So, what does it do?"

The refrigerator kicked on. "Oi, power's back." He jumped up and drug Amie over to the microwave. "Funny thing about machines – they do what they're programmed for without thinking about whether it makes sense. Way'll, most machines don't think about it. So, a molecular transport conductor finds itself without direction, but knows its job is a teleport. What's it do? It makes a connection with all the clocks in the house, pulls power into them, and sets up a dozen random transport locations. These clocks aren't wrong – they would have reset to noon when the power failed. They're all showing different time zones!"

He slapped the microwave. "Here, six hours ahead – that's Ireland. Oven – that one's five hours behind, it'll be Phoenix Island or Samoa. Aha! Look at this one!" He beamed at Amie. "Eleven and three quarters ahead. Nepal. Fascinating people, the Nepali. I didn't see much of them though, only popped in on my way to Shangri-La."

Amie struggled to follow the Doctor's rapid explanation. Does he really think I'm getting this? "Cool stuff, but – what made the teleport take Lauren? I mean, Joe used the microwave last night and he didn't get zapped away. Though that would have been really funny."

"You are making it work," the Doctor said, as if that should be obvious.

"Lolz."

"No, really. You obviously have a strong psychic connection to the space-time continuum."

"Oh, obviously." Amie rolled her eyes. What does that even mean?

The Doctor ran his hands through his hair. "You don't believe a word I'm saying."

"Nope."

"Look, that type of molecular transport conductor was never designed to work on its own. Someone with the right kind of space-time psychic link has to control it. So, without that it's inert – possibly for years. Someone puts it in a clock because for all they know it's a new type of battery. It works grand – not doing anything strange, just keeping time. Until it shows up here. Being in the same house as you turned it on, and I suspect having it around activated a dormant gene in your DNA – your time-space connection – which is why you've been having these glimpses of the future."

"The future?"

"Yes. Me traveling with a ginger, Lauren getting sucked into the past. You knew she was going to be teleported, then you thinking about it when she touched the microwave made it happen. Bit of a self-fulfilling prophesy, that."

"So... you're saying I can make people teleport, just by thinking about it?"

The Doctor grinned. "Oh, yes. Want to try?"

"Yeah!"

He grabbed her hand and slapped it on top of the microwave. "Think about being with Lauren."

Amie shut her eyes. "Take me to Lauren," she whispered. An electric shock coursed up her arm. She jerked back, opening her eyes. "Ouch, that hurts!"

"Not bad for how far we've come." She looked around. She and the Doctor were standing on a rocky slope. A thick forest lay behind them. In front of them...

"Lauren!"

Lauren looked up from a pile of electronic equipment. "Amie?"

Amie dashed across the slope. Lauren met her half-way and they bear-hugged.

"Oh, geez, it's so good to see you!" Amie laughed.

"You too! I should have known we couldn't be apart for more than an hour. How'd you get here?"

"Same way as you – magic microwave. Apparently I have mad skills with teleportation molecular thingys."

The Doctor sauntered up, hands in his pockets, grinning from ear to ear. "Look who else is here, Amie." He nodded at someone behind Lauren. "It's Mr. Ghost Boy."

Ioan stood over his unpacked gear, staring at the Doctor and Amie. "You're the people I saw in that room."

"That was my kitchen!" Amie yelled at him. "And I want to know what you were doing there!"

The Doctor was examining Ioan's equipment. "Ah, teleport receiving unit. Homemade too. Care to explain how part of your equipment wound up in Amie's kitchen?"

Ioan looked defensive. "I don't know how it got there."

"But you have a guess," the Doctor prompted. "Tell us what you're doing."

"I don't think it's any of your business. In fact..."

"Ioan?" There was an edge to Lauren's voice that immediately caught everyone's attention. "You said there was just the one."

Amie followed Lauren's gaze down the slope. Five metal balls – flying robots – were streaking towards them.


	7. Red-marked

"Run!" Ioan yelled. "Don't just stand there – run!"

But there was no time to run. Amie yelped and ducked as one of the drones zipped past her head. Lauren dove sideways and tumbled down the slope, two drones after her. Amie grabbed a rock and slung it at them. It bounced off one, knocking the drone sideways and giving Lauren a chance to scramble up and duck the second drone.

Amie grabbed more rocks, throwing them as fast as she could regardless of accuracy. Ioan tried to fend a drone off with his empty backpack. Another drone zipped over Amie then exploded in a shower of blue sparks.

She whirled to find the Doctor, his face grim, pointing his sonic screwdriver. Lauren yelped.

The four remaining drones converged on the Doctor. Another one exploded in mid-air but the rest zipped around his head, too fast to hit, too fast to follow. The Doctor stumbled backward and fell. His screwdriver flew off and clattered among the rocks. Amie ran toward him, a rock in each hand. The drones paused directly over the Doctor. They hovered there a moment, then vanished.

"Are you alright?" Amie gasped, dropping to her knees beside him.

The Doctor slowly sat up. "Yeah, I'm fine." He looked around in surprise. "They had us and they left – what did they leave for? Ow –" He reached up behind his ear and pulled out a small dart. He studied it quizzically. "Darts? Highly mechanized drones shooting darts? That's like arming marines with cream pies. What's that for?"

"Is it... oh god, it's not poisoned is it?" Amie asked.

The Doctor licked the tip. "No – it's got something coating it though. Some sort of genetic residue. Gaah." He made a face. "Nasty flavor."

Amie turned to check on the others. Ioan sat on the ground with his head in his hands. Lauren stood a little way off, her face ashy gray.

"Lauren!" Amie leaped toward her. "Are you okay? Where are you hurt?"

Lauren held out her hand. Another dart lay in her palm. "You said it would 'something like' kill me," she addressed Ioan in a trembling voice. "I think you should tell me what that means."

Amie looked at Ioan. He didn't move. She turned back to Lauren, gasped, then shrieked, "Lauren – you're ginger!"

Lauren stared at her, started to laugh, looked down at her braid, made a choking noise, and sat down hard. "Geez – just 'cause I like red hair doesn't mean I wanted it. I was happy with brown."

Amie whirled on the Doctor, "Doctor, what is going – oh god. You're ginger too?"

The Doctor stared at her for a moment then grabbed both her shoulders. "Say that again, Amie from Kansas. Say that again and promise me you're telling the truth."

His intensity scared her. She took a deep breath. "Doctor, you are ginger."

His face burst into a giant grin. "Ginger! I've always wanted to be ginger. How do you think I look? Wish I had a mirror. Wonder if it suits me?" He ran both hands through his hair. "Oi, it even feels ginger. I wish Donna could see me now – this is the one thing I didn't get, even when I was her. Is it a dark red or more of a strawberry?"

"Dark."

He grinned happily. "Dark, brilliant. Just like yours. We must look related. Right," he abruptly rounded on Ioan, "tell me – why am I ginger?"

Ioan lifted his head, his expression was filled with despair. "Because she's coming. I thought she had only sent the drones to kill me, but she's coming herself. She's coming to steal your soul."

There was a strained silence. Amie glanced around to see if anyone else understood him. Ioan put his head back in his arms.

"Okay, steal my soul. Sounds nice and creepy, but what does that actually mean?" the Doctor asked. A quiet laugh – cold, feminine, and mocking – echoed through the air. Everyone jumped and looked about for its source. Its effect on Ioan was electric. He sprang up, his despair replaced by fury.

"Morrigan! Show yourself, Witch. Quit leaving the dirty work to drones – face me yourself," he shouted. He was answered by another laugh. A blue image flickered before them.

"Eighteen months of running away and you demand that I face you? You know that's what I've always wanted, Dear One."

Amie watched, fascinated, as the blue blur resolved itself into the shape of a woman. Even as a hazy image, she was strikingly beautiful. A rich gown flowed smoothly across her tall figure, and her hair cascaded over her shoulders in heavy waves. But Amie's strongest impression was of the woman's face. Her beautiful features held a sinister haughtiness, and an unpleasant satisfaction with their own perfection.

The woman didn't grow any clearer. She remained transparent, a blue image that flickered occasionally.

"Leave these others alone, Morrigan," Ioan demanded, stepping forward to face the woman. "Your business is with me, not them."

The woman laughed. "You know I can't, Precious. They're aiding you in rebellion. I must make an example of all of you or I will lose my people's respect. No, I shan't get much benefit from the girls, but that one," she looked at the Doctor and her eyes sparkled, "he has a future with more richness than any I've ever seen. No, I shall take you all."

Ioan was breathing hard, though from fury or fear Amie couldn't tell. The woman continued, "I must say I've enjoyed watching you run, Darling. To think that you really believed you could escape by going to another planet! Oh, it is too funny. But you know I've only been toying with you. I could have fetched you at any time, but I wanted to give you the chance to see for yourself how clever you are, and why I chose you. It's rather sad too, because now you know what you're losing." She pretended to pout, but her eyes still mocked.

"You. Will not. Have me," Ioan spat out.

"Oh, but I will, Dearest. I will. You're marked as mine and you can never change that."


	8. Soul Stealer

"Now see here," the Doctor stepped forward, "there's a lot of vague threatening going on, but as far as I can see you're an unsubstantial projection commanding a few drones armed with genetic alteration darts. Now, what is it that you really want, eh?"

The blue lips curved upward. "He hasn't told you?"

"We haven't had a lot of time to talk between time hopping and drone attacks."

"Oh, Darling," Morrigan squealed, "you simply must tell them. Tell them how you will reward them. Just like you've rewarded everyone else who's helped you."

Ioan's jaw clenched and Amie noticed his hands, hanging by his sides, trembled. "Stop playing your little games, witch. Come and get me. Let's finish this now."

"As you wish, my prince." She smiled coyly at him, and reached up to a pendant hanging from her neck. "Like it? I copied the design from yours." She twisted the pendant. Her image sharpened and solidified.

At the same moment, Amie saw Ioan reach up inside his jacket. He jerked out a gun and fired at Morrigan. But she had vanished. Ioan whirled to find the Doctor pointing his screwdriver at where she had been a moment before.

"You let her get away! Damn you, I could've finished her off."

The Doctor pocketed his screwdriver. "No, you couldn't. She knew you were going for that gun just as surely as I did. Good thing I'm a faster draw then both of you. I've bought us some time."

"How? She has a teleport, she can come right back."

"Yup, but I reversed the polarity on it – sent her back home instead of coming here. She'll be able to fix it but I reckon I've bought us an hour. Which means you," he leveled his gaze at Ioan, "had better explain everything quickly."

Ioan defiantly met his eyes. "I'll tell you, but there's nothing you can do."

"Oh, I wouldn't say that. I'm awfully clever."

Amie came up behind the Doctor. Lauren joined her, placing her arm around Amie's shoulders. They listened as Ioan related his story.

"I'm from the planet Ériu. People there have a special connection with the space-time continuum. That connection can look a lot of different ways. For me, I do time-reversal healing. Others can see glimpses of the future, or communicate telepathically. Occasionally you'll get someone who can freeze time briefly."

"That must come in handy for cutting kids' hair."

"Or playing pranks on teachers. But anyway, for us it's a normal part of life. Some people use their abilities in good ways, some in bad. For most of us it's a bit of both. But nobody has ever been able to do anything half so terrible as Morrigan."

"Who is she?"

"Her full name is Narissa Morrigan. She's the self-proclaimed queen of the Ériu. She has a stronger psychic connection to time and space than anyone we've ever seen. She's able to look at a person and read the potential of their entire future – their talents, intelligence, creativity, lifespan. If someone is exceptional, she takes that future, steals all the things they could've invented and learned and done. We call it soul-stealing."

"Does she – it – does soul-stealing kill a person?" Lauren asked breathlessly.

"No. That's the worst part. Soul-stealing locks a person in the present. They'll live the rest of their life never changing, never growing old.

Amie laughed. "Perpetual youth? Doesn't sounds so bad."

"Oh, I don't know," the Doctor said solemnly. "Would you enjoy spending the rest of your life exactly as you are now? Never learning? Never maturing? Never experiencing new things? You couldn't have children. Couldn't make new friends. Your whole life – stuck repeating what you'd already done."

Lauren looked appalled. "Okay, not so great," Amie admitted. "I get bored eating leftovers."

"Why has no one tried to stop her?" Lauren asked.

"They did, a couple generations back. It was a massacre. With those drones guarding her no one stands a chance. Since that time, most people have decided it's best to just ignore what's going on, live a normal life, and hope you aren't exceptional enough to catch her eye. It's easiest to do nothing. And your chances of being left alone are good – she only takes two or three people a year."

"That's so nice – a serial killer with self-restraint," Amie muttered.

"But how does it work – the actual soul-stealing?" the Doctor pressed. "No one can just steal another person's future, no matter how strong of a space-time connection they have. The biology doesn't work like that."

"That's where the red hair comes in. When Morrigan chooses someone her drones inject them with a special gene. It increases their space-time connection, making it possible for Morrigan to absorb their future. The red hair is a side effect. On Ériu we call it being 'red-marked.' Morrigan travels to a different part of the country each year to choose her victims. The victims are red-marked, then left until she's ready for them. No one's ever had more than six months. When she wants them, the drones follow the genetic signal and bring the red-marked person to her. That's why it's impossible to hide, she can always track you down."

"What about you?" the Doctor asked. "You're obviously trying to escape from her, but there's more to it than that. You built this equipment yourself. Why? There's no way you could have made all of this in six months."

Ioan sighed. "You're right. I've been working on this for a year and a half now. Eighteen months of running, hiding, fighting off drones, always sleeping with one eye open, and always working on this." He indicated the equipment spread out on the rocky slope. "It's a teleport designed to operate on the same space-time connection as the Ériu. It's programmed so that when someone is red-marked, the increased space-time connection will automatically teleport them here."

The Doctor looked thrilled. "That's brilliant!" He paused, "But it doesn't work, does it?"

Ioan scowled. "No. But it hardly matters now. My whole plan was based on finding a planet to escape to beyond Morrigan's reach. I bribed a Leprechaun smuggler to take the molecular transport conductor – that's what powers all of this – and set it up on some obscure world. When I didn't hear back from him for months, I assumed he'd taken the money and run. But then today the transport conductor activated – that was Lauren getting accidently teleported –" he nodded at her, "so I assumed he'd done his job."

Lauren spoke up, "Did you say a Leprechaun smuggler?"

"Yeah."

"Like, the short fellows that wear green and are always hiding a pot of gold?" she asked facetiously.

"That's them. How'd you know? They're quite the misers. On Ériu they're known for being willing to do anything for the right price."

"And you trusted one to help you?" the Doctor asked.

"Didn't have much choice. I'm a death sentence for anyone who helps me." Ioan glanced at Lauren, who was fingering her red hair, and quickly looked away. "I don't know how the molecular transport wound up in your house, Amie – though knowing the Leprechauns he probably got drunk and lost the thing. But once I got the signal that it was working I came here with this." He pulled a small metal object, roughly the size and shape of an egg, from his pocket and flipped it to the Doctor.

The Doctor put on his glasses and studied the item. "Hand-held teleport."

"Draws its power from the molecular transport unit, controlled telepathically. That's why it can be so small."

Amie peered at the thing. "Can I?"

The Doctor handed it to her. "Be careful what you think about. Wrong thought and you could wind up anywhere." He winked at her.

She grinned. "Ooh. Awesome sauce." Where would she go if she could wish herself anywhere? It was pretty epic to think that she could. Mad mind powers – who knew?

"Right," the Doctor leapt up and studied the equipment. "We've got a soul-stealer that could show up at any moment. I suggest we quit jawing and make this thing work."

"But," Ioan protested, "what good's it gonna do?"

"Aw, never say that," the Doctor replied. He pulled open a circuit board, working it over with his sonic screwdriver.

"Look," Ioan insisted, "when that first drone showed up I assumed – I hoped – that it was a fluke, and that it had accidently slipped though the vortex with me. But you saw the others. Morrigan can get to us here just as well as in Ériu. There's no point in being able to bring anyone else."

The Doctor put down his work, walked over to Ioan, and looked him squarely in the the eye. "You're not a quitter," he said softly. "Eighteen months. You have been evading Morrigan for eighteen months when no one else has ever made it more than six. No wonder she saw you were special. You are absolutely brilliant. And you won't give up now for the same reason you haven't given up before. Because it matters."

Ioan sighed. "You're right."

"Course I'm right. Now, tell me how the actual soul-stealing works. How does she do it?"

"She just... touches you."

"Nothing else?"

"No. She grabs hold of you and... there's a bit of a glow... and she takes your future. It's all over in less than a minute."

The Doctor pondered for a moment. His face grew serious. "I'm going to ask you a question, Ioan. One question and I want you to think very carefully before you answer because the lives of everyone here depend on your reply."

Ioan nodded solemnly. The Doctor spoke slowly and deliberately, "Does Morrigan always wear jewelry?"

Lauren snorted. "You're asking a man to remember what a woman wears? I'm a woman and I couldn't tell you what color Amie's shirt is without looking."

Amie glanced down at her t-shirt. Blue. I knew that.

"Does her crown count?" Ioan asked.

"Yes. Crown, necklace, bracelet, braces – is there anything that she always wears?"

Ioan considered for a moment. "I've only seen her twice in person. But as self-made queen, she always wears her crown in public. For the rest of it, I don't know."

The Doctor's face lit up like a Christmas tree. "That's good enough. That's good enough. Allons-y, Ioan! Let's get this mess working." He took off his coat and tossed it to Amie.

"But, what do we do when Morrigan gets her teleport working and comes back?" Ioan asked.

"Stay out of arms reach."


	9. Sad, Lonely, Good Man

Soon both men were busy with the equipment – pulling wires, adjusting settings, tossing each other tools, and speaking intelligent mechanical gibberish. Amie watched their activity, uncertain what to do with herself. Guess I'm not much use here, except as a coat rack. I could maybe hold screws. Lauren was obviously in the same boat. She stood out of the way, studying the work. She seemed most interested in whatever Ioan did. Amie sidled over to her, slipped her arm through hers, and leaned her head on Lauren's shoulder.

"You don't make a half-bad ginger."

Lauren snorted. "I'm gonna need a lot of practice to do it as well as you."

"Well, of course. I'm just naturally talented."

Lauren hugged her. "I feel like I should be way freaked out right now. We've only got a wicked queen showing up shortly. But I'm not that nervous."

"They're looking after us, what could happen?" Amie asked.

They both looked down the slope at the men. Ioan was lying under a circuit board, switching wires while the Doctor watched the results and gave instructions. As they watched, one of the wires sparked and a fuse exploded with a snap. Ioan jumped and banged his head on the bottom of the circuit board. The Doctor grabbed a bottle of water from Ioan's backpack, dumped half of it on the smoking fuse, and took a drink from the rest.

"Okay, now I'm nervous. That is not what you're supposed to do to an electrical fire."

Amie laughed. "It's the Doctor. He doesn't do anything the way it's supposed to be done."

"Hey, what do you think of Ioan?"

Amie pondered. "Well," she said hesitantly, "I didn't really like him at first, he seemed kinda... not nice. But after hearing his story I can understand why."

"I feel bad for him. He's been through a lot."

Amie glanced at Lauren. "Soo... What do you think of Ioan?"

"He's really interesting. He's had everything against him but he hasn't given up, he keeps on fighting. And not just for himself, he's trying to rescue everyone. That's how I met him – he football tackled me to keep this drone from shooting me. Then he did a really cool time healing thingy on my foot. He's definitely got a lot of courage."

Amie smiled significantly. Lauren saw the look and blushed. "What?"

"Nothing," Amie said, grinning bigger. "He's kinda cute, isn't he?"

Lauren pretended to casually study him. "Eh – not really that handsome. Maybe ish."

"Uh-huh," Amie said.

"C'mon," Lauren protested, "he's an alien. I can't have a thing with an alien."

"Why not? Her family did." The Doctor appeared suddenly beside them. He took his coat from Amie, fished around in an inside pocket, and pulled out a woman's shoe. "Sorry – need this."

Amie grabbed him. "Wait! Wait – what do you mean my family had a thing with aliens?"

"Look at you," the Doctor said. "Red hair, space-time abilities – there's Ériu DNA somewhere in your past, all mixed up with the human genes."

"Oh, c'mon. I'm ginger 'cause I've got Irish blood."

"Mm-hm," he said. "And we're standing in Ireland four thousand years ago with a teleport that, if it works, will bring ginger aliens here for resettlement." He went back to the equipment.

Lauren stared after him open-mouthed. Amie jumped up and down. "See, Lauren? You've got to marry Ioan. What if you're my great-great-great-great-great grandparents? If you don't fall in love, I'll never be born!"

"Okay – I think my mind just exploded."

They wandered down the slope to be closer to the work in progress. Well, actually to be closer to the workers.

"Anything I can do?" Lauren asked Ioan, not very hopefully.

"Do you know anything about quantum physics?"

"No."

"Then I can't think of anything," he said brusquely. He glanced at her through a mass of wiring and his expression softened. "But you're more than welcome to keep me company. I like your farm stories."

"Well, I've got lots more."

Ioan crawled back under the circuit board. His gun caught on the edge and fell out with a thunk. Lauren picked it up and handed it back to him.

"Why didn't you use your gun on the drones? Seems like it'd be more effective than a branch."

"I only have three shots – two now. I've saved them for Morrigan if all else fails. Sorry, but I couldn't use them on the drones, even to save you."

The Doctor spoke, "I think you should let me have the gun."

Ioan lifted his chin and deliberately tucked the weapon into his belt.

"Killing someone isn't a good last resort," the Doctor warned.

"You're one to talk."

Both men stared at Amie. She clapped her hands over her mouth. Oh god. "I mean – he's the one talking... the one talking sense. You should listen to him." That was not supposed to be out loud. But she'd seen it – the Doctor's home and his people and his great, terrible choice.

Ioan looked puzzled, shrugged, and went back to his work. Soon he and Lauren were discussing the existence of God.

The Doctor came over to Amie and stood looking down at her. There was deep, lasting sorrow in his eyes. I've never seen someone with so many regrets. There have been many since... since Gallifrey, but that's the one he despises himself for the most.

"You know what I've done," the Doctor spoke softly.

"It was the only thing you could do."

"But you saw it?"

"Yes."

"And?"

"And what?"

"Amie, you've looked inside of me. You've seen parts of me I'd like to hide, even from myself. Being around me is deadly – even if you make it out alive you'll still be burned."

"I know. I saw that."

The Doctor studied her. "And?"

Amie threw her arms around him and buried her face in his chest. You poor man. You sad, lonely, good man. I'm almost glad you'll soon forget parts of what you've done.

The Doctor stiffened when she hugged him. Slowly, she felt him relax, then wrap his arms around her shoulders.

"It wasn't you fault," she whispered.

"If you've seen everything you know that's not true."

"It is true. You were the only one trying to end the killing."

"And that's why I know murder isn't a good way to end things. No matter how evil the person, no matter how many lives it saves, you pay the price for taking a life. Killing always damages you."

Amie squeezed him tighter for a moment, then stepped back. "Okay," she rubbed her eyes, "I think you should leave me to this fabulous job I'm doing holding your coat, and go finish your highly techy job. Enough about death, you're saving people."

The Doctor smiled at her and returned to his work. Amie watched him, a tear threatening to spill down her cheek. Yet somehow, no matter how many people you save, it doesn't make up for the ones you lost. You poor, sad, magnificent man.


	10. Witch's Crown

The Doctor had estimated an hour before Morrigan returned, and that time was almost up. No one talked anymore. There was a feeling of tense expectancy as the men raced to finish their work. Ioan sliced his thumb on a bit of metal and swore vehemently. He flung the offending object and stormed off in search of a tool, leaving Lauren to inconspicuously pick up the item and return it to its place.

The Doctor's ginger head hovered over a scavenged collection of circuitry. At the center of the collection, fantastic coils of wiring snaked around a woman's silver shoe. The Doctor connected a final wire to the heel. "There! Not bad, eh?" He admired his work.

Amie looked from the shoe to his satisfied expression, then back to the shoe. "Fun stuff. Uh... why a shoe?"

"It's not really a shoe. Way'll, it is, but that's not what it's for. That's just how you wear it." He paused, as if there was some kind of intelligible explanation in what he'd said.

"Uh-huh," Amie said, trying to figure out what she'd missed. He needs to come with subtitles. And a layman's translation. I could really use some super psychic insight right about now. "So the shoe is... a shoe?"

"It's one half of a telepathically controlled biofuel individual teleport. The Ériu aren't the only ones to use mind-controlled teleports. I've combined the system in this shoe with Ioan's existing equipment. This will compensate for the instability he's encountered in the artificial vortex and create a controlled evacuation, even if large numbers of people are teleported at once."

"Fun stuff. Is the other shoe still in your coat?"

"No," the Doctor squinted at a dial and adjusted something. "Dorothy lost them both on her way home. I only ever found the one."

"Wait – Dorothy like Dorothy and Toto? The Wizard of Oz?"

He looked at her, puzzled, "Yeah. I told you I knew her. And before you ask – it was the Miloreans that caused that tornado, I didn't have anything to do with it. Way'll," he looked guilty, "maybe a little."

"Dorothy's shoes were red."

"Not in the book!" Lauren hollered from down the slope. "They were red in the movie to show off the techni-color. In the book they're actually silver."

Amie stuck out her tongue. "Shut up." Lauren laughed smugly.

Amie turned back to the Doctor in time to see him stagger and catch himself heavily on a rocky outcrop.

She sprang to his side. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, fine. I'm fine." He waved her off. "Just tripped."

"No, I saw you. You didn't trip."

"Debatable." He leaned against the rock, collecting himself. Amie glared at him. "Okay," he admitted, "so I may have felt a touch dizzy." He pulled himself up.

"How long have you been having dizzy spells?"

"That was the first."

"Liar." Amie studied him narrowly. "You've had them since you arrived at my house, haven't you? What is going on?"

The Doctor groaned. "See? This is why I can't stand mind readers – impossible to lie to. Look, there is a malicious, soul-stealing queen on the loose and I think dealing with her is much more important that discussing the history of my little headaches. So how about we get on with that, eh?"

"Fine, but don't think this conversation is over."

"I wouldn't dare presume that you'll forget." He resumed his work.

Amie watched him with a concerned scowl. "So, will what you've done here stop Morrigan?" She gestured to Dorothy's shoe and his electrical work.

"That won't, it's only for bringing red-marked Ériu here. To make sure they're safe once they're here I've built – "

There was a loud crackling sound. Six drones materialized around the worksite and Queen Morrigan, terror of the Ériu, stepped out of thin air in their midst. Seen in person, she was more beautiful than anyone Amie had ever met. All the colors of her face and figure appeared too vibrant to be real. Dark ringlets, the color of blood, framed a finely chiseled face. Her eyes were dark, her lips crimson, her lashes and eyebrows jet black and perfectly shaped. And her skin was so smooth and white that by contrast with her lips there seemed to be no color in it.

"So good to see all of you again! Clever work, sir," Morrigan addressed the Doctor, "sending me backwards like that. You are a very intelligent man. But then, I already knew that." She smiled at him.

"Listen, Morrigan," the Doctor said, his voice hard, "I'm giving you one warning. You have no right to steal these people's futures. Let them go."

"Or what?"

"I'll stop you."

She threw back her head and laughed. "The brave Doctor, here to save the day. Oh, yes – I know who you are, Time Lord. I can read you like an open book. Yes, you always ride in to stop evil and rescue everyone. Like during the Time Wars. Oh, and all those people on the Titanic, or in Pompeii. And then Rose, and Martha, and Donna. Mustn't forget that you saved all of them."

The Doctor stood stone faced. Amie wanted to scream and slap Morrigan. How dare you. How dare you throw that in his face.

"One warning, Morrigan. Are you going to leave them alone?"

Morrigan smiled. "Oh, I think you know the answer to that. Never."

"Very well." He stooped down and pulled an odd device from a satchel. It looked like a remote, but with only one button and an odd bulb sticking out of the end.

Morrigan arched perfect eyebrows and stepped closer. Everyone but the Doctor automatically drew back. She smiled around the group. "Ooh, I can't wait to see what the genius has come up with. This is so exciting."

The Doctor looked at her sternly. "I don't think you'll like what this does."

"Show me, Dearie."

Amie roller her eyes. We're being threatened by a flirt with evil powers.

"It's simple really. It does this." He punched the button. The box emitted a harsh buzzing and the bulb began to glow. He held it up. "Artificial psychic enhancement detector. Interferes with the sub-telepathic pulse emitted by an artificial psychic enhancer. Such as..." He looked at Morrigan's crown. It was glowing slightly. Suddenly sparks erupted from its center and the glow blinked out. A wisp of smoke curled up from the crown and dissipated in the still air.

The Doctor reached out and removed the crown. "Impressive collection of jewelry. Can't wait to hear what the earrings do."

"Callisto pulse," Morrigan smiled. "Girl's gotta have her gadgets. So, you've defanged the serpent. You must be so proud."

"I knew no one could be genetically able to transfer another person's future, even with the red hair. It's what I told Ioan – the biology doesn't work like that. So, for you to steal futures you must have discovered a way to artificially enhance the space-time connection. Such as this tele-kinetic unit." He held up the tiara.

"Bravo, Doctor," Morrigan clapped her hands. "I'm so glad you've had your moment of triumph." She reached up and caressed the Doctor's cheek. "It makes mine all the more sweet."

Amie gasped. The Doctor stood transfixed, completely unable to move.


	11. Never Mess With a Ginger

Morrigan laughed. "Oh Doctor, Doctor. Poor deluded Doctor. As if your stunning intellect and cobbled together machines could stop me from getting what I want. Well, you overlooked one detail: that crown is Ériu technology. You can shut it down with your remote, but I can restart the system with my mind."

The Doctor made a strangled, choking noise. Amie could see veins standing out on his temples as he struggled to move.

"This means so much to me, Doctor – gathering the wealth of a hundred minds into my own. But your future – oh! There is more potential there than in a thousand human lives. With the power of a Time Lord I can rule the universe." She stroked his tense cheek, and rubbed her fingers through his hair, smiling at the way it stood up. She tapped him lightly on the nose. "But not yet. I won't take you yet. I want you to see me at work while you can still learn. That way you can fully appreciate the gift I give – and the gift I take." She cradled his face in her hands and traced his mouth with her thumb. It made Amie shudder to see her brightly painted nail toying with his lip, and his complete inability to resist.

Now, Morrigan snapped her fingers and two drones honed in on the Doctor, grabbing his shoulders and arms in their claws. Morrigan stood on tip-toe and put her scarlet lips to his ear. "Watch and learn," she whispered. "For the last time – watch and learn." She stepped away from him.

As her hand left the Doctor's cheek, he gasped and began struggling against the drones. "Don't stand there gawping," he shouted. "Run!"

Lauren took off down the hill, a pair of drones after her. Amie hesitated long enough to see Ioan whip out his gun and fire it at Morrigan. She was one step ahead of him. As the gun fired she vanished, reappearing next to where she'd been.

"Whoops. Not a good shot, are we, Dearie?" Morrigan asked gleefully. One of the drones snatched the gun from Ioan. In two steps Morrigan reached, grabbed his shoulder, and froze him in place. The last two drones honed in on Amie. She fled.

Slipping and stumbling on broken rocks and uneven ground, she dashed towards the wood. "Oh god, this is not what I thought I'd do today!"

She had a good start, but the drones were fast. The whir of their flight filled her ears, growing closer by the second. She was running too hard to look back. The first trees loomed in front of her. She staggered between the trunks, willing her tired legs to go faster. Underbrush caught at her ankles and branches slapped her face. Her breath came in great gasps. Keep going, don't stop, don't slow down. A metal claw scraped her shoulder. I never should have got out of bed!

Her foot sank into the ground, twisting her ankle sideways. Amie shut her eyes and flung up her arms as she fell. Her hips landed on something soft. The rest of her kept tumbling forward, falling another foot down and striking a hard flat surface. Her eyes popped open. She was lying sprawled on the floor of her room, with one foot still up on her bed, tangled in the blankets. Warm, late-afternoon sunlight shone through the windows and somewhere a fly buzzed against a window pane.

Amie kicked the blanket off her foot and scrambled up. "What? What? How did I...?" She felt something poking into her hip. She stuck her hand in her pocket and pulled out Ioan's hand-held teleport. "Okay, I forgot I had this." She held it for a moment, while images of droids and Morrigan holding the Doctor tumbled through her mind. "So, what do I do? Now I'm safe, what do I do about them?" She glanced at the teleport. "If I go back..." Suddenly she turned and raced down the hall.

"Please don't have put it away, please don't have put it away." She careened down the stairs, leaping the last steps into the entryway. "Yes!" She snatched up her bow from beside the piano. "Yay for procrastinating!" Grabbing her quiver, she slung it on her shoulder, then pulled out an arrow and notched it on the string. "Okay teleport thingy," she gripped it tight, "hill above Morrigan – close but hidden." She visualized an outcropping of rocks, a short distance from where they'd been. The next moment, she stood beside it.

She ducked down and peered between the rocks. Morrigan stood less than thirty feet away. Ioan knelt in front of her, her hand pressed against his forehead. Lauren and the Doctor stood nearby, held by drones. Amie could hear them clearly.

"Morrigan, don't do this," the Doctor pleaded. "You're interfering with the laws of the universe. No one can live forever. We shouldn't try."

"There you're wrong, Doctor. I can live forever," Morrigan mocked.

"But at what cost? Look at him – you're taking that man's future."

"I know. I'm making it my future."

"But what can you do with it? Sure, you'll be a little cleverer, but will you care for people the way he's tried to? Will you invent and create and learn brilliant new things? Think of all the people he'll meet, the friends he can make, the family he can love. You'll never do those things for him. This is the only life he has. Don't take it from him. Let him live it."

Morrigan laughed. "Oh, Doctor, you are so cute when you're desperate. All the trivial accomplishments of a single life are worthless when you compare them to what I shall do. I will unite the universe and create peace for all creatures."

"Fearful obedience is not the same as peace. And no life is worthless. Especially not the ordinary ones."

"Your philanthropy is touching, but unconvincing. Watch closely, Doctor, as I give the gift of life-long youth."

Morrigan placed both hands on Ioan's head, closed her eyes and took a long, slow breath. A yellow glow grew out from her fingers. Small sparks swirled around Ioan's head and up her arms.

It's now or never. Amie stood up slowly, carefully taking her stance. Hips square, back straight, elbow level. She pulled the bowstring back until it brushed her cheek. If I botch this there won't be a second shot. Aim for her eye – the most lethal point. Aim. Breathe in –

The Doctor's voice echoed through her mind. "Killing isn't a good last resort. You pay the price for taking a life."

"Screw that," Amie muttered. "For my friends it's worth it. Never mess with a ginger."

She released. The arrow flashed through the air, faster than sight. Amie knew the moment she let go that it was too high. Morrigan gasped as the bolt grazed the side of her head and yanked out a lock of hair. 

Amie swore violently and scrambled to get another arrow on her bow. The stupid quiver fell over, tangling the arrows in the shoulder strap. Morrigan was shouting – shrieking below her, and Amie could hear the whir of drones, swooping in on her hiding place. She yanked an arrow free and stood up, fumbling with the bow. She looked down the slope. Morrigan's eyes flashed up at her. One hand clutched her head and blood showed on her fingers, mixing with her crimson hair.

"Tear her apart!" She screeched, pointing at Amie. "Tear her to pieces!" That was her mistake. For one second, she let go of Ioan.

As Amie ducked the drone's attack, releasing her second arrow at random, Ioan whipped the kitchen knife from his boot and plunged it upward, deep between Morrigan's ribs. She let out a blood-curdling cry. Orange sparks exploded around her. The next instant she, the drones, Lauren, and the Doctor vanished.

Ioan collapsed to the ground. Amie dropped her bow, raced down the hill, and bent over him. "What do I do? What do I do? Oh god, what if he's dead?" She tentatively put her hand on his neck. He's still warm. That's gotta be good. After what felt like forever – possibly three seconds – she found his pulse. Alive. She rolled him over onto his back and checked for injuries. None visible. Did I distract Morrigan in time? Amie nervously watched the rise and fall of Ioan's chest. Where's Lauren and the Doctor? What should I do now?


	12. Ériu

After Morrigan screamed, Lauren felt as if the drones holding her were trying to rip her apart. She was drug backwards and down. The earth collapsed around her. The green grass turned black and the sky became a threating orange. Before she could orient herself the iron claws released her. She staggered sideways. A hand caught and steadied her.

"Whoa, I've got you," she heard the Doctor's voice. They were standing together in a large courtyard that looked grim enough to belong to Dracula's castle. At the far end, Morrigan stood above a short flight of steps. Her face was chalk white, her chest heaved, and blood stained the hand she pressed against her ribs.

Her eyes flashed as she addressed the Doctor, "You've won, Time Lord, but I will still have my revenge." She yanked the pendant from her neck, threw it to the pavement, and shattered it beneath her heel. She shouted a command to her drones hovering nearby, then staggered inside the castle.

"What is she doing?" Lauren had to shout above the rising wind. "Are we her revenge?"

The Doctor watched the drones streak away over the courtyard walls. "No."

"Then what?"

Screams and sobs rose up beyond the walls. "C'mon!" the Doctor shouted.

They raced together to the open gate. A town spread out before them, starting almost at the castle gate and dropping away in a bewildering jumble of streets and houses. As they watched, the screams increased in volume. A woman ran past, clutching a child. A drone appeared from around a corner, shot two darts in quick succession, then zipped away. Within moments both the woman's and child's hair was red.

"No!" the Doctor cried. "No, she can't!"

"I don't understand," Lauren gasped. "What's happening?"

He rounded on her, his eyes burning with intensity. "Think about what the drones do – they mark the people Morrigan chooses, keep track of them, and bring them to her when she wants them. As far as the drones are concerned, red-heads are just livestock."

"But Morrigan's dying – she can't steal anyone else's soul."

"Exactly. So what happens to the livestock when it is no longer needed?"

"They're released?"

"They're killed." The Doctor gazed down on the village with a dark expression, terrible to behold. "The drones will kill them all."

Lauren looked at the red-haired woman. She knelt in the middle of the street, clutching her child and sobbing. "Can we help them, Doctor?" She glanced at his face and shuddered. He looks so cold, and... and inhuman. "Doctor?"

"We can try." He whirled back into the courtyard and leapt across the flagstones, racing to the steps where Morrigan had stood. Lauren paused for a moment as a wave of nausea swept over her. Not now. She fought the feeling down and hurried after the Doctor.

"We have to activate Ioan's teleport – it's programmed to evacuate the red-marked Ériu. Take them all to ancient Ireland where they'll be safe." The Doctor scooped Morrigan's crushed teleport off the pavement.

"Can we activate the teleport from here?" Lauren panted.

"No, we have to be in Ireland. Which is why we need to be very lucky..." He worked on the device with his screwdriver. "Blast! The vortex phaser is cracked. We'll only get one trip out of this thing."

"But that's enough."

"No – teleporting hundreds of people will take a lot of power, more than can be drawn from Amie's house. I need to get back there also and boost the power supply. And we're running out of time." He frantically worked on the teleport pendant. "C'mon, c'mon, think! Amie's back there, but she won't know what to do. Unless..." He whirled to Lauren. "Give me your mobile."

\-----

Amie jumped as her ringer went off. She snatched the phone from her pocket and answered it. "Lauren?"

"It's the Doctor." His voice was urgent and breathless.

"How are you calling me? My phone's dead."

"No time to explain – but you're going to lose more than your contact list. Is Ioan there?"

"Yes, but he's out cold."

"Then you'll have to do it yourself."

"Do what?"

"I need you to listen carefully and do exactly as I tell you. Do you have Ioan's hand-held teleport?"

"Yes, I've got it." Amie clasped the teleport. Her heart pounded as she listened to the Doctor's rapid instructions.

"That device has a direct interface with the rest of Ioan's equipment. I need you to turn on the equipment – it's the red switch beside Dorothy's shoe – then use the teleport to bring all the Ériu there immediately. Lauren and I are going back to your house to supply you with the power. Where's your breaker box?"

"South side of the house, under the kitchen window. But, but wait!" Amie gasped, "I don't know how to run any of this stuff!" She stared desperately at the mass of unfamiliar wiring and complicated electronics.

"Amie," the Doctor's voice was gentle now, "Amie, listen to me. People are going to die. A lot of people. You were willing to kill someone to rescue us – now I need you to rescue them. And I know you can. Everything there is telepathically controlled. All you have to do..." The phone speaker crackled and died.

"Doctor? Doctor?" Amie shouted into the phone. She took it from her ear and stared at the black screen. "Uh, uh, uh..." she gasped. "Okay, okay. Calm down Amie. The Doctor is counting on you. Ooooh..." She turned to the strange equipment, searching among the bewildering array for the red switch.


	13. Out of Time

"Is she ready?" Lauren asked. The Doctor slowly took the phone from his ear, his expression grim. "Is she gonna teleport everyone?" Lauren insisted.

He flipped the phone to her. "Course she'll teleport everyone. She's a ginger. Never bet against gingers – unhealthy." He held out his hand, palm up, with the pendant lying in it. "Now, slap you hand on that and grab tight."

Lauren grabbed his hand. Quick as thought they were standing in Amie's kitchen.

The Doctor raced for the door. "It'll take a lot of power to teleport hundreds of people at once. A monstrous amount of power. I'll have to bypass her breaker box to supply it all." He flung open the back door and bounded around the corner.

"Doctor," Lauren panted, "if powering one teleport jump blacked out Amie's house, what are several hundred going to do? Black out the town?"

"More than that," the Doctor ripped the breaker box open. "I expect to black out the country."

"What?"

The Doctor pulled off safety covers and paneling, exposing the mass of electrical wiring inside. Lauren shuddered at the sight of the bare wires. Those are live. Touch the wrong thing...

"Doctor," she took a step closer, "is there any way I can help?"

"Yes, get far away. When the power surges it's going to punch a hole in the vortex and flood this area with toxins. I want you to get back inside where you'll be safe."

"What about you?"

"I'll be fine. Just go." He ripped a bunch of cables loose, causing a shower of sparks. He fished out his screwdriver and jabbed it inside the breaker box. Lauren tore her eyes away. I hope this works. As she turned to hurry inside, two drones swooped around the corner.

The Doctor saw them and groaned, "No – not now."

"Don't stop working, Doctor!" Lauren snatched an iron pipe off the ground and faced the incoming drones. "I got this."

\-----

Amie found the switch and flipped it on. The console began a low steady hum. Dorothy's shoe, perched among its mass of wires, emitted a faint glow that steadily increased. Amie clasped Ioan's teleport between her palms.

"Okay – mind control. I can do this. I just have to think about what I want. Think about hundreds of ginger aliens. Think about bringing them here. Don't think about how nuts this whole thing is." She closed her eyes tight, trying to concentrate, but her mind frantically tore from one idea to the next.

"No, stop it." Amie clenched her teeth. Gaaah, I'm too worked up. I gotta calm down so I can focus. She took several deep breaths, but her heart rate only increased. Time was running out.

\-----

More sparks, as the Doctor tore loose cables and spliced them back together. "I won't be able to use my screwdriver on the droids – it has got to keep a steady connection with the.."

"It's okay, I'll keep them back," Lauren yelled. The first drone swooped in. She swung the pipe hard. The drone dodged away, narrowly avoiding the stroke. Lauren swung back, clipping the second drone and knocking it sideways. It spun, bounced off the house, and hit the ground – slowed down, but not out of commission.

The first drone made another pass. It swooped around Lauren, aiming for the Doctor. Lauren dove to intercept it. Her wild swipe passed under its body, but the pipe snagged on its metallic arms, jerking the drone away. The drone clamped its claws around the pipe. It yanked and pulled, trying to rip it from Lauren's grasp. She held on grimly. The metal slipped slowly in her sweaty palms. She gripped tighter, wrapping her fingers around the iron until her knuckles were white.

She swung up hard, attempting to hit the droid and knock it loose. It kept its arms stiff, holding her off and impeding her efforts to swing the pipe. The second drone whizzed past her, straight toward the Doctor.

"Doctor!" she yelled.

He looked up with the drone right on top of him. Quicker than thought, he flicked a cable at the drone. The machine exploded in a crackling blur of blue lightning.

Lauren jerked down hard on the pipe, then suddenly swung up. The droid didn't have time to adjust. She slung it in a wide arc and smashed it into the ground.

\------

Amie sat on the ground with the teleport in her lap. She placed her fingers on her temples and remembered the Doctor's touch, his words.

"Time," she whispered. "Space. Crossing vast emptiness." She focused on drawing the Ériu in, bringing hundreds of souls across space.


	14. Vortex Poison

The breaker box crackled and hummed. Electricity arced visibly along the wire leading to it.

"Atta girl, Amie!" the Doctor shouted. "Bring 'em in!" He leapt back, just as a surge of power exploded through the box with a blinding flash that turned the whole world white. The explosion threw Lauren and the Doctor backward. They lay on the ground, covering their heads as fiery bits of melted wiring rained down around them. Gradually, everything grew still.

Lauren raised her head. The breaker box hung sideways on the wall, smoke rising from it. She looked over at the Doctor. His grin almost split his face.

"She did it."

Then they were both up, shrieking and laughing and hugging.

"Go Amie! Way to go, girl!"

"You weren't so bad yourself – taking on two drones with half a piece of pipe."

"That was so great the way you zapped the one."

A utility truck pulled up to the curb and a man stuck out his head. "This the Coleman residence?" he called.

"Uh... yes. Yes it is," Lauren answered. "Can I help you?"

"I'm with the city power office and we got a call that you've been having trouble with power outages. They sent us over to – holy crap!" he broke off, catching sight of the still smoking breaker box. "What happened there?"

Lauren and the Doctor looked at each other and erupted into laughter.

"I – I really have no idea," the Doctor said, trying and failing to keep a straight face. "We just found it like this. Could it have something to do with the power cuts?"

The utility man did not look amused. "You're lucky that didn't burn the house down. You weren't monkeying around with that box, were you?"

The Doctor looked innocently at Lauren. "Us? No. Course not. Wouldn't dream of touching something so dangerous. See – it has warning stickers all over it."

"Oh, no," Lauren suppressed a snort. "We'd never ignore a warning sticker."

The utility man eyed them suspiciously. "See that you don't. Might get somebody killed. Now clear out and let my crew get to work on this mess."

\-----

Amie looked about in amazement. As far as she could see were groups and clusters of red-haired people. Many stared at their surroundings with surprise that slowly gave way to curiosity and relief. Some called back and forth to each other. A child ran past, laughing. The mother chased it, smiling through a tear-streaked face.

Amie heard a moan behind her. She turned to find Ioan sitting up, looking about.

"What happened?" he asked thickly.

Amie threw herself on him in a giant hug. "I did it! The Doctor told me how, and I brought all the Ériu here. They're safe!"

Ioan scrambled up and looked around. His face broke into a smile. "Way to go, ginger!" he yelled.

Amie jumped up and down. They're safe! Everyone is safe.

\-----

Lauren and the Doctor were waiting in Amie's kitchen when she materialized with Ioan. Amie flung herself at the Doctor. He held out his arms and stepped forward to meet her.

"Amie! You were magnificent. I knew you could do it."

She laughed and hugged him tight. "Ugh, you smell like smoke. And your red hair's all singed."

He shrugged. "Way'll, small price to pay for success. And just think – the Ériu can enjoy Ireland for centuries now and nobody will bother them. Though I must say," he tilted his head back thoughtfully, "they'll cause a lot of headaches for the British."

Amie turned from him to bear-hug Lauren. "Gaah, I'm so glad you're alright."

"I'm so glad you made the teleport work – you awesome woman, you. Mad time skills. I knew there was a reason I liked you."

Amie released her and was surprised when Lauren sat down abruptly in a kitchen chair. "You okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Adrenaline must be throwing me all screwy. I felt light-headed for a sec there." She smiled brightly and cocked her head at Ioan. "You get a hug too, but I guess you'll have to come get it."

He came over and Amie smiled happily to see Lauren hug him. Hugging first, kissing next.

"Are you really alright?" Amie asked Ioan. "Morrigan didn't get your future?"

"My soul's still intact," he said. "I've got a future." She saw him glance at Lauren as he said it.

"So that's it then Doctor?" Amie asked. "Gingers are really aliens?"

"Way'll," he smiled playfully at her. Gaah, he's such a charmer. "Thousands of years of marrying with humans, mixing the gene pool? You're human enough – most of the Ériu genes have gone dormant. You still sunburn easier though. Ériu has a class three sun – gentler sunlight."

Amie laughed and glanced at Lauren. Her laughter died in her throat. Lauren was deathly pale and her eyes looked glassy.

"Lauren!" Amie yelped. Lauren tried to smile reassuringly, but the effort failed. "Doctor, what's wrong with her?" Amie looked appealingly at him. He was serious now. Serious and sad.

"It's vortex poison. We were too close when the power surged. Amie," he paused and gazed at her with compassionate eyes, "I'm sorry. I am so, so sorry. She's dying."


	15. Goodbye

"No!" Amie gasped. "No, that's not fair. She just helped save hundreds of people. This can't be how it ends. Doctor, you've got to do something!"

"I'm sorry. There's nothing I can do."

"But you're the Doctor!" she yelled at him. "You risk your life to save complete strangers. Now save her!"

He gazed steadily at her. Not reproachfully, just steadily.

"Oh god," Amie gasped. "It's killing you too."

"I'll be fine. I do this thing..."

"Regenerate," Amie interrupted. "But you can't, not this time. The poison's infected both your hearts. You're dying too, and... and you have been since you arrived."

The Doctor nodded. "That's the way vortex poisoning works. It kills you in the past as well as the future. That was the dizziness we've both encountered – the poison already at work."

Amie stood holding Lauren's hand, looking from her to the Doctor while tears streamed down her face.

"It'll be okay, Amie," Lauren whispered. "I'll get to meet my grandfather."

"Shut up!" Amie yelled. "That is not okay, it's not okay." She broke down and hugged Lauren's neck.

Ioan spoke, "I can help them."

"How?" Amie spoke sharply to keep herself from hoping too soon.

"Time-reversal healing?" Lauren asked. She turned pain-filled eyes to Ioan. "Like with my foot?"

Ioan nodded. He addressed Amie, "It's my space-time talent. I can reverse the Doctor and Lauren's personal time. For them, it'll be as if the last few hours never happened."

"Well then do it!" Amie said impatiently. Why is he still standing there? C'mon, save my friend. Let's go people!

"They – they aren't going to remember any of this."

"So?" And then Amie realized what he meant. She turned a terror-stricken face to the Doctor. "You mean – no. Everything? From when you arrived and... and all of it?"

The Doctor nodded.

"Why so much?" Lauren asked faintly. "You only took my foot back two minutes. Why do you have to take us back hours?"

"Because you've been dying for hours. I wish there was another way, but –" Ioan stopped and took a deep breath. "I need to do this now, before you get any worse. Amie, she'll be unconscious for a while. Is there a place she can lay down?"

"Living room couch," Amie answered automatically. She felt dazed. Out of all the bizarre things that had happened today, this was the most surreal. Ioan picked Lauren up. She relaxed against his shoulder and he carried her out of the room.

Amie turned to the Doctor. He leaned against the counter, legs crossed, arms folded, ginger hair stuck up in its crazy, beautiful way. "You won't – you won't even know I exist," she choked out.

"Oh, Amie. Wonderful, red-haired, Amie from Kansas." He took her face in his hands, smoothed back her hair, rubbed a tear from her cheek. Looking up, Amie could see his eyes glistening. "I wish I could keep my ginger Amie."

She sniffed and buried her face in his shirt. "And soon you'll have another ginger Amy. And she'll be so great for you. And it won't be me."

"You'll always be my first Amie. I saw you up there on the hill. You were willing to sacrifice yourself for all of us. You didn't even think twice about it."

"Well..." Amie searched for something to say.

"It reminds me a lot of someone else," he finished.

"Doctor, I'm ready for you," Ioan called.

"Way'll," the Doctor stood up, straightened his shirt, sniffed absently. He looked down at Amie. "You've been brilliant, Amie from Kansas. Simply brilliant."

He walked out of the room without looking back.

In a few moments, Amie heard the same whooshing noise that had caught her attention early that afternoon. She dashed from the kitchen and into the living room. The blue box was gone. Ioan stood beside the couch, looking down at Lauren. She lay on her back, one hand trailing onto the floor, as peaceful as if she only slept. Her brown hair strayed out of her braid in wisps and tufts, and two small curls escaped from behind her ear.

"What happens now?" Amie asked.

"She wakes up in a few minutes and is perfectly fine."

"No – what about you?"

"Oh, me," Ioan paused, as if he hadn't considered that yet. "I take the molecular transport conductor out of your clock and go back to Ireland. You won't have any more power outages."

"I wasn't thinking about that." There was a silence. "So... you'll stay in Ireland?"

"Maybe. At least long enough to help my people get settled. I've still got this," he held up the teleport. "Maybe I'll travel. Who knows."

"You can always come visit," Amie invited.

"Maybe," Ioan said.

Which means you won't.

Ioan looked down at Lauren one last time, turned, and walked out of the room. Amie could hear him pick up the kitchen clock. Then he was gone.

She plopped down in an armchair, flipped on the TV, and began idly surfing the channels. She was watching a really stupid show – one she'd seen before – when Lauren sat up, rubbing her eyes and looking dazed.

"Whoa, I must have been really tired. I do not remember falling asleep."

Footsteps sounded out in the entryway. Amie snapped her head up, looking eagerly for the owner. The blanket was pushed back, and JB poked his head in.

"Hello, ladies. Did I miss anything?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story is inspired by, written for, and dedicated to my favorite ginger—  
> the only person who will ever know if these events actually happened.


End file.
